Device for handling sheet material



Sept; 4, 1951 E. v. GRATER DEVICE FOR HANDLING SHEET MATERIAL Filed June 14, 194? ATTORNE Y3,

Patented Sept. 4, 1951 DEVICE FOR HANDLING SHEET MATERIAL Edward V. Grater, Bronx, N. Y., assignor to Afliliated Machine & Tool 00., New York, N. Y., a

partnership Application June 14, 1947, Serial No. 754,787 3 Claims. (01. 294-1) This invention relates to means for handling sheet material such as metal, glass, plastic, etc.

In the fabrication of articles from sheet material it is often necessary for workmen to grasp the said material by its edges. This practice has resulted in many industrial hand injuries despite the use of gloves and other protective devices. Where rags or waste are employed to protect the hands of the worker, they have frequently become entangled in moving machinery, resulting in more serious accidents.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a safe means for handling sheet material.

Another object of this invention is to provide a handling device capable of facilitating the feeding sheet material into a machine.

A further object of this invention is to provide a device for feeding sheet metal into a machine having means therein to reverse the direction of the said feed.

An object of this invention is to provide a device for handling a wide variety of thicknesses of sheet material, without the requirement of adjustment.

A feature of this invention is the use of an eccentrically mounted cam to grasp the edge of the sheet material.

Another feature of this invention is the use of a coil spring to urge the cam into contact with i the sheet material.

A further feature of this invention is its simplicity of construction.

The invention consists of the construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as herein illustrated, described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a, part hereof, is illustrated one form of embodiment of the invention, in which drawings similar reference characters designate corresponding parts, and in which:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of a complete embodiment of the invention, partially cut away to show its construction.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-4 of Figure 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Figure 3 is an end view in elevation of the invention.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary view of the cam receiving recess showing the position of the coil spring therein.

Figure 5 is a rear View of the cam.

Figure 6 is a side elevation of the cam.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly to Figures 1 through 3, l0 indicates a handle shaped housing having an arched central portion l I and upstanding end members I 2 to prevent hand slippage. The housing I0 is centrally recessed at l3. The recess I3 is circular in shape except for the bottom portion thereof, which is cut off by the bottom I4 of the housing H) at 5.

A central bore I6 is provided in the rear wall I! of the recess I2. The wall I1 is also provided with an annular groove l8 concentric with the bore Hi. This groove I 8, best shown in Figures 2 and 4, is provided with a pin I9 located in its uppermost part. The upper portion of the pin l9 has a diameter equal to the width of the groove l8 into which it projects.

A coil spring is positioned within the groove l8 and is slightly shorter than the length of said groove. One end 2| of the coil spring 20 bears against the pin l9, while the other end 22 of the spring is spaced from the said pin (see Figure 4). It is possible to shift the spring 20 so that its end 22 bears against the pin l9 andits end 2| is spaced therefrom. This change will afiect the operation of the handling device in a hereinafter described manner. I

The cam 23, which comprises the sole moving part ofthis invention, is bestshown in Figures 5 and 6. This cam '23 is circular in shape and provided with an eccentrically located bore 24. It is provided with a pin 25 press-fitted intobut projecting from the rear face 26 thereof. The front face 21 of the cam 23 is beveled at 28. A knurl 29 is machined into the periphery of the cam 23 and also into the bevel 28. This knurl 29 prevents the cam 23 from slipping as it grips the sheet material.

The cam 23 is supported by a bolt 30 which is inserted through the bore l6 of the main housing ID. This bore it may be enlarged toward its outer end, as shown at 3| in Figure 2, to receive the head of the bolt 30. The bolt 30 is passed through the eccentrically located bore 24 of the cam 23 and screws into the threaded bore 32 of a plate 33.

The plate 33 is arcuate in shape and seats within a lip 34 cut into the main housing I 0 around the edge of the recess I3 in such manner that the plate 33 lies flush with the front of the housing Ill. The bottom 35 of the plate 33 is straight and conforms to the bottom Id of housing ID.

A gripping flange 36, having an L-shaped cross-section shown in Figures 1 to 4 is secured to the bottom of the housing H] as by screws 31. The base of this flanged member 36 is recessed the to receive the screws 31 so that a smooth surface will result along the bottom of the handling device. The horizontally extending portion 38 of the, L-shaped gripping flange underlies the cam 23 and, in conjunction with the base of the housing I0, forms a channel 40 through which the edge of the sheet material (not shown) may p I "i When thec'am 23 is slipped upon the bolt 30 the pin 25 projecting from the said cam is fitted into the groove [8 between the pin I9 and the end 22 of the spring 29 (see Figure 4.). The coil spring 29 thus opposes any rotating 0f the cam 23 upon the bolt 30. This action keeps the cam; 23 in contact with the sheet material'at all times. The preferred construction of this device shown in the drawings contemplates a positioning of the cam bore 24 and pin 25, which will give the cam an 18 offset from the vertical before the sheet material is introduced into the channel 40. a the o erat o th handl n evic o e apparent from an examination ,of Figures ,1 to 3.

The edge of the sheet material is slipped into the, channel shaped groove 40 formed-by the bottom Mv of th ous ng 10 nd e gri ping flan e member 36 The handling device is then drawn back or in a direction opposite the direction of feed. As the edge of the material rubs along the ':beYel,,28 ofthe cam 23, the Kllllll 29 thereon causes t e cam 23 t r ta e 199!! th bolt 30 'lhis rot tion causes the b vel to imb up th edge of the material, which lifts the cam 23 so that the sheet material can slide beneath *Qigce the sheet material is within the Channel 40 it may be pulled or fed in only onedirection,

any motion in the opposite direction being resisted by the construction of the cam 23 which will turn upon the bolt 30 and force the sheet -;materi'al against the gripping flange member 36.

. spring 20, around the groove [8 as described above, and reassemble the device with the cam pin '25 on the opposite side of the pin IS in th groove 18. I

While the cam disclosed as metal, it is within the purview of this invention to construct it of resilient material or with a resilient face to handle materials such as glass or ceramics.

The construction of this device will enable the 23 shown in the drawings is user to grasp sheet material of various thick nesses from several thousandths of an inch up to the width of the channel 40, without making any adjustment of the handlin device.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

v 1. In a device for handling'sheet material, a housing,'an eccentrically bored cam comprising a circular member provided with a bevel on the front edge thereof adapted to raise the cam mounted within the housing, a gripping plate thereunder secured to the housing and means to annular groove to urge the cam against the said grippi p a I 3,. In a device for handling sheet material, a

housing, a recess within the housing having an axially bored rear wall provided withan annular groove, a pin located within the said groove, an ecccntrlcally bored cam mounted within the recess, said cam having a rearwardly projectin Din adapted to. enter the annular groove and a bevel on the front face thereof adapted to raise the cam, a gripping plate thereunder secured to the housing and spring means positioned within the annular groove between the two pins therein to urge the cam against the said gripping plate.

EDWARD V. QRATER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,036,626 House Aug; 2'7, 1912 1,100,552 Galloway June 16, 1914 1,837,425 Gastan Dec. 22, 1931 2,006,949 Hockensmith July 2, 1935 2,476,734 Jellison July 10, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Da 8,917 Great Britain Apr. 15, 1909 

